Nonrefillable bottle and container stopper



Egg, AM I EfiEYlAl-flfi NONREFILLABLE BOTTLE AND CONTAINER STOPPER Filed March 15, 1955 QM Invenf'or b M A fforne y Patented Feb. 18, 1936 UNITED STATES NONEEFILLABLE BOTTLE AND CONTAINER STOPPER Liborio Amaru, Boston, Mass, assigncr of onehalf to Fortunata Amaru, Boston, Mass.

Application March 13, 1935, Serial No. 10,856

3 Claims.

The invention relates to bottle or container stoppers of the type which wheninserted in the neck of a bottle or when .attached properly to a container will render such bottle or container unrefillable. The main object is to provide a bottle stopper which when once inserted in the neck of a bottle and properly sealed positiveli i be readily understood from the following description of a preferred embodiment of the invention, in which, however, modification may be made without departing from the scope of the appendent claims.

Figure l is a fragmental cross-sectional perspective view of a bottle neck with a stopper shown inserted therein. The view is taken in line AA of Figure 2.

Figure 2 is a plan view of the stopper with part of the valve removed, showing part of the plug body piece and mound therein (the cap piece is omitted here as well as the bottle neck).

Figure 3 is an isometric view of the cover piece or cap.

Figure 4 is an isometricview of a the special valve.

Figure 5 is an isometric view of the body piece showing the mound.

Figure (MS a cross-section view through A-A at the scale showing the apparatus in a tilted or pouring position. The neck of the bottle has here been omitted. 1 7

Referring now to all the views simultaneously, the stopper comprises essentially a cylindrical body piece containing as part of it a mound providing a valve seat; a special valve which fits inside the body piece and a cover piece.

In the upright position, as shown in Fig. 1 the special valve 4 rests on the rim crest or seat of annular mound 1 in the body piece or plug 5,

thereby constituting the closed position of the valve by closing the orifice 8' in the body piece. The mound is best described as being annular because of its central opening, although obviously the annular construction is not necessarily circular.

The top piece or cap 3 rests on the rim 9 of body piece which is longer than the height of mound 1 and thereby affords a clearance between the top face of the valve and the under face of the cap.

The skirt iii of the valve fits loosely into the groove ll of the body piece so as to allow proper clearance and free movement of the valve along 5 the inside surface l2 of the body piece. The cap and body piece are held together and secured in the bottle neck 2 by a hollow cylinder 6 of some resilient material .as, for example, cork.

As shown in Fig. 1 the apparatus is applied to 10 a bottle with an annular flange l3 and sealed by the sheet metal collar M, which bears against the under side of the annular flange and along the entire circumference.

This, however does not limit the use of the apparatus to bottles with this type of neck. (The Fig. 1 here, serving merely as an illustration.) The apparatus may be applied to any container with any type of opening, as for example the exterior surface of the body piece, and the surface 15 of the capmay be threaded to fit threads on the inner surface of the neck of the container, and then properly sealed; so that the container may not be filled nor the apparatus removed without breaking the seal.

Let it be understood that the method of attaching and sealing the apparatus is beyond the scope of this invention. a

The cap extends above the neck of the bottle in this case, and the opening I6 may be stopped by an ordinary cork stopper or the cap may be constructed to hold screw-cap by altering the flange ll of the cap.

The process of emptying the bottle: The bottle is tilted thru an angle of more than 90 degrees as shown in Fig. 6 in the position of pouring. The valve 5 will slide along the inner surface l2 of the body piece, partly because of the pressure of the contents on the surfaces l8 and I9, and partly because of its own weight. The valve will come to rest when the pegs I (which are either one piece with the valve or inserted in adequate holes or screw threads) bear on the under surface of the cap. This affords a clearance between the top surface 20 of the valve and the under surface of the cap, equal to the height of the pegs.

At the same time, as shown in Fig. 6 the body piece mound l is separated from the valve surface l9.

In as much as tilting the apparatus causes the valveto assume an eccentric position, the liquid will flow thru the clearance created by such eccentricity.

Its path is from the body of the bottle through the clearance between the mound I of the body piece and the surface 2| of the valve; thence between the rim seat of the flange 1 of the body piece and the surface marked IQ, of the valve; thence between the side of mound 1 and the skirt I of the valve; thence around the edge and along the sides of said skirt, thence between the pegs and out through the orifice IS in the cap.

The features which prevent the tampering with the apparatus of the bottle as well as prevent it from being refilled will now be explained.

If the bottle is tipped thru an angle of 180 degrees approximately so that the valve occupies the open position, and liquid is forced into the cap orifice I6, the conical chamber 22 of the valve will act as an air chamber and the buoyancy created will cause the valve to return to its closed position.

Obviously an increase in the outside pressure will only serve as a better closure at the surface l9 therefore, no liquid can be introduced.

Returning to the upright position as exemplified by Fig. 1 the valve will fall to the closed position.

Now then if liquid is poured into opening I 6 of the cap, it will flow first into the chamber or well 22, then overflow over the top surface of the valve, and then pour into groove or trough I I which will eventually become filled with liquid. The clearance marked 23 will not become filled with liquid however, since there is no air outlet, and the buoyancy created will merely tend to lift the valve.

The valve weight, however, coupled with the weight of the liquid now in chamber 22 is great enough to offset this buoyancy.

It is my purpose, therefore, to make the valve heavy enough and the chamber 22 large enough so that the weight of the valve plus the weight of liquid in chamber 22 is greater than the buoyancy created by air in clearance 23. Hence, here too, the valve will remain closed and the liquid will not enter.

Next shaking the bottle, still in this upright position, with an up and down motion, and the liquid still in all the spaces of the apparatus, with the intent of lifting the valve by inertia with sudden impact by jerking the bottle downward will be futile.

It is true that I intend to make the valve heavy enough to weigh down the buoyancy as described above, but at the same time the valve will be made light enough to render it practically and actually unsusceptible to inertia.

It will be found, that in this case it will be the liquid in the chamber 22 that will respond to inertia and not the valve.

It is understood in all these cases that the closure between the rim seat of mound 1 of the body piece and the surface IQ of the valve is water tight and air tight; either by proper fitting of the two surfaces or by the installation of a resilient ring to create proper seal.

While I have shown. and while I prefer to make the body parts as well as the valve of porcelain and to use these parts in three'pieces, it will be understood that other substances may be used and that the body piece Fig. may be made on piece with the bottle or bottle neck.

I am aware that prior to my invention, unrefillable bottles have been made. I therefore do not claim such an invention broadly, but having described the different parts and their operation, what I claim and wish to protect by Letters Patent is:

l. A liquid flow-contro" device for the mouth of a container, comprising an annular plug body,

adapted to be permanently secured in the mouth of the container, the hollow of this annulus being open both inward and outward of the container, for passage of liquid, but having a ledge facing inward near its outward opening; and having an annular mound, rising in axial direction within said hollow, with crest surface therein transverse to the axis and constituting a seat for a valve; and a valve housed within said hollow and movable axially to and fro relative to said seat; said valve being a relatively deep cup, whose well is open outward into direct axial communication with said outward opening in the plug body, and whose walls have outer surfaces continually and entirely exposed for being contacted by liquid flowing from the container, and have inner surfaces continually and entirely exposed for being contacted by liquid entering the mouth of the container; there being stand-off means between said ledge and that face of the valve which is toward said mouth, for maintaining the valve in spaced relation to the adjacent wall of the hollow when the valve moves from its seat.

2. A liquid flow-control device for the mouth of a container, comprising an annular plug body, adapted to be permanently secured in the mouth of the container, the hollow of this annulus being open both inward and outward of the container, for passage of liquid, but having a ledge facing inward near its outward opening, and having an annular mound, rising in axial direction within said hollow, with crest surface therein transverse to the axis and constituting a seat for a valve; and a valve housed within said hollow, directly exposed opposite said outward opening in the plug body and movable axially to and fro relative to said seat; there being a trough continuous around the said mound; and said valve having a skirt set at a location which is radially outward from and is continuous around said seating portion and extends into said trough of the plug in slightly spaced relation to the walls of said trough, whereby liquid entering the mouth of the container initially contacts the valve to seat it, and traps air in the narrow passage between valve skirt and trough walls, which air prevents the liquid from reaching the valve seat.

3. A liquid flow-control device for the mouth of a container, comprising an annular plug body, adapted to be permanently secured in the mouth of the container, the hollow of this annulus being open both inward and outward of the container, for passage of liquid, but having a ledge facing inward near its outward opening; and having an annular mound, rising in axial direction within said hollow, with crest surface therein transverse to the axis and constituting a seat for a valve; and a valve housed within said hollow and movable axially to and fro relative to said seat; said valve being a relatively deep cup, whose well is open outward into direct axial communication with said outward opening in the plug body, and whose walls have outer surfaces continually and entirely exposed in the liquid passage on one side of the valve, and have inner surfaces of those walls continually and entirely exposed in the liquid passage on the other side of the valve; the said valves having pins projecting to engage said ledge for keeping open this part of the outward passage,

LIBORIO AMARU. 

